Courtesy of Mark's History Facebook page, this walk includes a pebble beach and old toll bridges. The site may soon be transformed due to a development of 160+ apartments planned, so catch it while you can:
1. Redcote Lane
Redcote Lane is just off Kirkstall Road near where the Asda is. According to Leodis It is thought that the name 'Redcote' derives from Rigg Cote which is mentioned on old maps of the area. In Armley Old Chapel there is a memorial dating from 1673 to a John Moore of Redgecote. Other memorials refer to it as Redcoat ''. Photo: Mark's History
2. Wall
As you walk up Redcote Lane(1) you will notice a wall on the right hand side that is possibly part of the old Boot Factory that was there in the early 1900s or the Maintenance Depot belonging to the Ministry of Works that occupied the site in the 1950s. Photo: Mark's History
3. Old Toll Bridge
As you walk further up the lane you will come to the old toll bridge(2) that was built for Benjamin Gott. Two lodges once stood either side of the bridge. If you look carefully you can see what looks like two metal stumps on the ground just as you walk onto the bridge. Could these stumps have something to do with the Toll Bar that would only have been lifted once you had paid to cross? Photo: Mark's History
4. Under the bridge
The bridge is well worth a look under and the footpath(3) you see going off along the river is also worth a walk. The path leads to the canal towpath but a fence bars your way when you reach it so you will have to come back on yourself. Photo: Mark's History
5. Nature reserve
Once you have crossed the bridge or come back from your detour you carry on walking until you come to some railway bridges. Look to your right as you near these bridges and you will see the entrance to the Kirkstall Nature Reserve(4). The reserve is on the site of the former Kirkstall Power Station and is made up of fly ash deposits and landfill. The site was capped in the 1990s. In medieval times it was a place where orchards grew. Photo: Mark's History
6. Circular path
There is a circular path that will take you all the way around the reserve and back to the entrance. Photo: Mark's History